Red Corsairs
The Red Corsairs are a Chaos Space Marine warband formed primarily from members of the Astral Claws chapter.
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Contents
Background
The Red Corsairs are a Renegade Chapter and warband of Chaos Space Marines who lead a vast fleet of pirates composed of mortals and other Traitor Marines that threaten Imperial shipping and Imperial worlds near the Maelstrom Warp riftin the Ultima Segmentum, a region known as the Maelstrom Zone to Imperial astrocartographers. The Red Corsairs were once a Loyalist Space Marine Chapter called the Astral Claws who were based on the world of Badab Primaris in the Badab Sector of the Ultima Segmentum. The Astral Claws were, ironically, raised during the 10th Founding in the 35th Millennium to guard against the numerous daemonic and alien threats emerging from the Maelstrom. Under the leadership of their Chapter Master, Lufgt Huron, the "Tyrant of Badab," in the late 41st Millennium, the Astral Claws sought to have the Badab Sector secede from the Imperium of Man in protest against the Imperium's continued attempts to use the resources of the Badab Sector outside the region rather than dedicating them fully to the defeat of the Chaotic and xenos threats that emerged constantly from the Maelstrom Zone. The Astral Claws and the Tyrant of Badab were able to convince several other Astartes Chapters also dedicated to the protection of the Maelstrom Zone, including the Executioners, Lamenters, and the Mantis Warriors to stand with them against the Imperium in what they believed to be a just cause and an attempt to maintain the traditional autonomy of the Adeptus Astartes in the face of unwarranted interference from the Imperial nobility, economic interests and the often hated Inquisition.[Needs Citation]
Unfortunately, Lufgt Huron had slowly been corrupted by his desire for power into the service of Chaos, and eventually the Imperium was forced to respond to the Secessionists in the Maelstrom Zone by unleashing the full might of the Imperium in the terrible civil conflict that became known in the Imperial record, before the Inquisition laid down an Order of Obliteration that sought to remove all records of the Astral Claws' existence from Imperial history, as the Badab War. This conflict was fought between 901.M41 and 912.M41 and ended in the complete destruction of the Astral Claws defences and the devastation of their Chapter homeworld of Badab Primaris. Only 200 Astral Claws survived the final Imperial assault, and these Astartes, all corrupted by Chaos, fled with the maimed body of their leader into the Maelstrom, where they founded a new Chaotic empire. The other Astartes Chapters who had served the Secessionist cause were eventually forgiven by the Imperium since they had only been misguided and not corrupted, in return for launching themselves upon a series of penitent Crusades. But Lufgt Huron swore his soul and the souls of his remaining Astral Claws to the eternal service of the Ruinous Powers in return for the restoration of his health and the power needed to make war upon the Imperium that he believed had betrayed him and his fellow Astral Claws. Replacing the ravaged portions of his body with bionic augmetics, Lufgt Huron, now calling himself Huron Blackheart, ironically led his corrupt Astartes, now calling themselves the Red Corsairs, back into the Maelstrom Zone to become the piratical raiders that he had so long fought against. In time, the Red Corsairs became the leaders of a vast Chaotic pirate force of Renegades and Traitors that represents a major continuing threat to the Imperium in the Ultima Segmentum[4]. During the Thirteenth Black Crusade, the Maelstrom merged with the Great Rift and the Red Corsairs have now been sighted further from their home than ever before.[18b]
Notable Engagements
- ???.M41 — The Fall of Vilamus
- ???.M41 — The Scouring of Makenna VII
- 799.M41 — The San Leor Massacre
- 937.M41 — The Third Purging of Lastrati
- 980.M41 — The Raid on Bakka
- ???.M41 — The Battle of Oldarian
- 959-961.M41 — The Pandorax Campaign
- ???.M41 — The Destruction of Mortain[11]
- ???.M41 — The Gildar Rift[12]
- 999.M41 — Besieging the Kaelas and Sessec Systems.[13]
- 999.M41 - The War for Chogoris. The Red Corsairs besiege the White Scars homeworld of Chogoris and greater Yasan Sector. Though they are defeated on Chogoris, the Red Corsairs hold much of the Yasan Sector and even for a time had captured the Scars Chapter Master, Jubal Khan.[19b]
- ~999.M41 — The Terran Crusade. Magnus the Red and Kairos Fateweaver are able to recruit a large force of Red Corsairs to combat Roboute Guilliman. The Red Corsairs ambush Guilliman's fleet and take both it and the Primarch captive aboard their new Blackstone Fortress. Skarbrand and Khornate Daemons attack the Fortress seeking Guilliman's head, fighting the Red Corsairs as well. Eventually Guilliman and his warriors are freed by Cypher and Harlequins.[17]
- ???.M42 - The War of Beasts on Vigilus.
- ???.M42 - The Arks of Omen Campaign. Battling in opposition to the Black Legion.[26]
- Battle of Malak - Part of the great Chaos host under Angron[27].
Combat doctrines
The Red Corsairs fight primarily as an expression of their twisted faith. In order to save what was left of his chapter and his hideously wounded body, Lufgt Huron made a terrible pact with the Ruinous Powers, pledging eternal service in return for the blessings and patronage of Chaos. With limited numbers at their disposal, the Red Corsairs spent much of their time as space pirates, but also launch brutal raids on Imperial shipping and outposts. These raids are not for plundering, but for the sheer pleasure of raiding the areas that they once swore to protect.[Needs Citation]
Organization
The Red Corsairs are organised into a large fleet, able to deploy small, elite forces of renegade space marines supported by larger groups of human reavers. The Space Marines among the force are supremely proficient at the boarding actions favoured by the chapter whose ship-to-ship fighting prowess is infamous. Huron Blackheart maintains a substantial fleet consisting of vessels captured over numerous engagements, ranging from a single Adeptus Astartes battle barge, a number of strike cruisers, many and varied escorts and a huge number of classes of interceptors and bombers.[Needs Citation]
Over the years through absorbing other bands of Renegade Space Marines and outlaws, the Red Corsairs have grown close to the size of a pre-Heresy Space Marine Legion.[13] While its Space Marines form the core of the Legion's fighting force, the Red Corsairs also includes vast amounts of Traitor Guard, Pirates, Mutants, Xenos, and any other willing to pledge themselves to Huron Blackheart.[23a] Known Xenos warbands in service with the Red Corsairs are the Loxatl[24] and Tarellians.[23b]
The Terminator elite of the warband are known as the Huscarls, serving as Huron Blackheart's personal praetorians.[23a]
Culture
The Red Corsairs seem to hold religion in contempt, with this even extending to the Chaos Gods. Only a few members of the Red Corsairs wear the symbols of Chaos upon their armor or engage in worship of the Dark Gods.[21] The Red Corsairs make regular sacrifices to the Gods of Chaos, but only insofar as to further their own power as opposed to genuine worship. Many of the Red Corsairs maintain cracked emblems of their previous Chapters upon their armour, scrawled over with their new dedication be it the Gods of Chaos or Huron himself.[23d]
Unlike many other Chaos warbands, Huron himself strives only for results and to that end will allow mortals in high-ranking positions and even converse with him somewhat casually and without pomp. That being said, he still demands that all refer to him as Lord.[23a][23d]
The Red Corsairs are a cutthroat warband, with displays of strength being the only thing that determines one position. Huron himself is suspicious of most of his own lieutenants, and is constantly seeking to maintain his power over them.[23b]
Gene-Seed
The Red Corsairs have no standardized Gene-Seed, instead raiding the Imperium for fresh gene-seed stocks in order to produce their own Space Marines. However the original once-stable gene-seed of the Astral Claws is quickly degrading and prone to mutation, with Chief Apothecary Garreon speculating this may be connected to whatever pact Huron Blackheart made after his wounding in the Badab War.[23b]
Assets
Known Relics
Known Vessels
- Blackstone Fortress — gifted to Huron Blackheart by Abaddon.[17] Currently under attack by the Masque of the Shattered Mirage and Yme-Loc
- Hell's Iris — Ramilies Class Starfort previously known as Canaan's Eye[8a]
- Aquiline — Overlord Class Battle Cruiser[8a]
- Hope's Sunset — Executor Class Grand Cruiser[12]
- Midnight Solitude — Executor Class Grand Cruiser[12]
- Might of Huron — Slaughter Class Cruiser.[15]
- Nightmare's Dawn — Executor Class Grand Cruiser[12]
- Reign of Spite
- Scourge of the Faithless - Gothic Class Cruiser (Destroyed by the Crimson Fists)[22]
- Spectre of Ruin — Battle Barge. Huron Blackheart's flagship[12]
- Venomous Birthright — previously belonging to the Night Lords where it was known as the Echo of Damnation[8a]
- Wolf of Fenris — Strike Cruiser previously belonging to the Space Wolves, captured at the Battle of Parenxes[6b]
- Bloodstrike - Stormbird and personal transport of Huron Blackheart[23b]
Notable Members
Astartes
- Huron Blackheart — Master of the Red Corsairs
- Armanneus Valthex — Master of the Forge of the Red Corsairs. Known as "The Alchemancer". High-ranking officer.[12b][23b]
- Garreon — Lord Apothecary of the Red Corsairs. Known as "The Corpsemaster".[12a]
- Garlon Souleater — Sorcerer Lord. High-ranking officer.[9]
- Verngar the Apostate - Former Angels Encarmine, now a high ranking officer.[23b]
- Katar Garrix - Headsman. High-ranking officer.[23b]
- Turazan - Warpsmith. High-ranking officer.[23b]
- Graeyl Herek - Pirate Lord[28]
- Oneius Prayd — Former Red Scorpion, now a warlord. High-ranking officer.[10]
- Corpulax — Former Consecrators, now a Plague Marine.[14]
- Kaldemar Kursh[16], known only by his saying
- Adnus the Severed, once a member of the Mantis Warriors (cf. perditas)[18a]
- Sartak — renegade Codicier[9]
- Variel — Apothecary Secundus known as 'The Flayer', betrayed the Red Corsairs and joined Talos and his Night Lords.[8b]
- Vassago Kurgos - Chirurgeon[28]
- Ardaric Vaanes — Originally of the Raven Guard. Joined Honsou's warband.
- Skarvjelsson - Formerly a Space Wolf of the Blackmanes.[19c]
- Haxan the Defiler - Former Crimson Fists[22]
- Tagron] - Huscarl[23a]
- Rathek - "The Culler"[28]
Crassus - Champion of Khorne[9]
Mortals
- Sargotta - Former Imperial Navy Fleet Captain[23c]
- Griza Dallax - Cybernetica Datasmith[23a]
Cultist Warbands
- The Jagged Oath
- The Nine Eyes
Notable Worlds
- New Badab - Capital World[4]
- Shovith - Located in the Chogoris System[19a]
- Gartuli - Fortress World located in the Gartuli System[19a]
- Thaxis - Agri-World located in the Thaxis System[19a]
- Hell's Iris space port[8a]
- Tyrant's Gate - Base
Formations
Related Articles
- Chaos Space Marine Legions and Warbands (List)
- Space Marine Forces (List)
- Astral Claws
- Badab War
- Skull Harvest
Sources
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- 1: Warhammer 40,000: Compendium[Needs Citation]
- 2: White Dwarf 101 (UK) - Index Astartes: The Badab Uprising
- 3: White Dwarf 303 (UK) - Index Astartes: Rogue Sons
- 4: The Skull Harvest (Short Story)
- 5: Codex: Chaos Space Marines (3rd Edition, 2nd Codex), pg. 7
- 6: Codex: Chaos Space Marines (4th Edition)
- 7: Imperial Armour Volume Nine - The Badab War - Part One, pgs. 54–56
- 8: Blood Reaver (Novel)
- 9: Into the Maelstrom (Short Story)
- 10: Apocalypse, pg. 171
- 11: Codex: Grey Knights (5th Edition), pg. 40
- 12: The Gildar Rift (Novel)[Needs Citation]
- 13: Warhammer 40,000 6th Edition Rulebook, pg. 176
- 14: Pandorax (Novel)[Needs Citation]
- 15: Warhammer 40,000 7th Edition Rulebook — The Pandorax Incursion
- 16: Strategy Cards for Planetary Empires expansion game, card "Planetstrike – Major Stratagem", (saved archive page, dated February 2011, last accessed 7 October 2015)
- 17: Gathering Storm: Rise of the Primarch, Part 3
- 18: Codex: Chaos Space Marines (8th Edition)
- 19: Codex Supplement: White Scars (8th Edition)
- 20: Tyrant of the Hollow Worlds (Novel) - Cover
- 21: His Will (Short Story)
- 22: None More Loyal (Short Story)
- 23: Huron Blackheart: Master of the Maelstrom (Novel)
- 24: The Chapter's Due (Novel) - Part 1, Chapter 5
- 25: Codex: Chaos Space Marines (9th Edition), pg. 102
- 26: Arks of Omen: Abaddon, pgs. 30-37
- 27: Arks of Omen: Angron, pg. 20
- 28: The Iron Kingdom (Novel) - Dramatis Personae
